Breaking News -
Networking:
Infineon Remains Committed To
Framer/RPR Technology
Infineon Technologies AG remains committed to the development of resilient
packet ring (RPR) technology. Infineon plans to release OC-48 and OC-192
framer devices this week that include the RPR media access control (MAC) layer
on board.
This device takes three off-chip components - a packet over Sonet (POS)
framer, RPR MAC, and mate serializer/deserializer (serdes) - and combines them
on a single piece of silicon, said Kris Harikrishnan, product marketing
manager at Infineon. With interest in the RPR camp centering around the OC-192
range, Infineon's 10-Gbit RPR product could capture attention in the
sector.
As far as the system goes, the 10-Gbit RPR chip provides a 16-bit SPI 4.2
interface that can burst up to 840 Mbit/s. On the line side, the chip delivers
and SFI 4.1 and SFI 4.2 interface for linking with Sonet systems as well as an
XSBI and Xaui interfaces for Ethernet applications. A second Xaui interface is
also provided, which can be used as a mate interface for protection switching
application.
The OC-48 RPR device offers many of the same features as the OC-192 part,
including the Xaui mate interface, SPI 4.2 line interface and POS framer. The
difference between the parts lies in the line-side interfaces supported.
Unlike the 10-Gbit part, this device only offers a 16-bit lines-side interface
that operates up to 155 Mbit/s.
By dropping the additional interfaces, the OC-48 part delivers lower power
operation than its 10-Gbit counterpart. The OC-48 device dissipates less than
3.5-W power during operation while the 10-Gbit device consumes under 8-W power
during operation.
The OC-48 and OC-192 devices are developed in a 0.13-micron CMOS process
and
are supplied in 980-lead ball-grid array package. Both are aimed at metro
router, core router and test equipment designs.
Sampling in the second quarter of 2003, the 10-Gbit device will be priced
at
$1395 while the OC-48 part will be priced at $645. To line up with RPR spec
development process, volume production for these chips is slated for the
fourth quarter of 2003.
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